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Speaking about the development of navigation in the Mediterranean, one cannot fail to mention the sailors of Crete, the creators of the first regular fleet in history. The foundations of the ancient civilization of Crete were laid in the 4th millennium BC. e., probably by immigrants from Asia Minor, the descendants of its most ancient population. It has been suggested that this civilization received an additional impetus to development from the inhabitants of the Nile Delta, who moved to the island around 3000 BC. e. The inhabitants of Crete created the first maritime power in history. From the end of III to the middle of II millennium BC. e. they reigned supreme in the Mediterranean - the memory of this was preserved in the Greek tradition, in the legends of King Minos and his thalassocracy (marine rule, dominance of the sea). The power and prosperity of Crete was based on maritime trade.

The Minoan civilization (so named by its discoverer, Arthur Evans) probably lacked the aggressiveness inherent in many early civilizations. Battle scenes are rare in the story-rich art of Crete, its cities had no defensive walls - the sea and a strong fleet protected it from foreign invasions.

It even seems strange that the images of the Cretan ships have been preserved almost exclusively on seals, where it is very difficult to make out and interpret small details. Judging by these images, until about 1600 BC. e. vessels with a high rounded bow and an almost vertically cut stern prevailed, sometimes with some kind of mysterious ledge in its lower part. They carried one mast almost in the center (in some cases it is even slightly shifted to the stern) with a large rectangular, almost square, sail. At the same time, ships were also depicted with the same rounded and highly raised bow and stern, resembling a crescent. Depictions of this type of ships predominate on later seals. According to the most carefully worked images, some ships had from 10 to 15 oars on each side, that is, they could reach 17 to 25 m in length.

The Cretans settled the islands of the Aegean, founded colonies in Cyprus and Rhodes, their trading posts were scattered along the entire Mediterranean coast, from Ugarit to Sicily and southern Italy. Crete also controlled the coast of the Balkan Peninsula, where, under its influence, by the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e. the Mycenaean civilization developed. Around 1470 BC. e. from the eruption of the Santorini (Thera) volcano, many island settlements of the Cretans suffered, and their fleet was probably destroyed by a tsunami. Left unprotected and weakened by a natural disaster, Crete was captured by the warlike Mycenaeans. The latter, however, failed to preserve the heritage of the Minoan civilization - the Mycenaean culture, in turn, was destroyed by new waves of settlers and conquerors. By the end of the XV century. BC e. references to Crete (Keftiu) also disappear in Egyptian texts.

We know about the civilization of Crete and the limits of its expansion mainly thanks to archaeological excavations and Greek legends - the early Cretan syllabary (the so-called Linear A) has not yet been deciphered. It has been suggested that the Cretan sailors went to the Atlantic, that it was they who, and not the Phoenicians or Greeks, were the first to discover the Canary and Azores. But the main achievement of this civilization was the creation of the first maritime hegemony and the opening of sea trade routes - a legacy inherited by the Phoenicians and Greeks, the object of their centuries-old struggle.

Phoenicians

In shipbuilding art, in navigation, trade and colonial activity, the Phoenicians in ancient times surpassed all other nationalities. The name of the people is foinikes, and the name of the country is foinike, of Greek origin and going back to Homer. It comes from the Greek foinix - red, purple, and is associated with purple fabrics, the production of which was famous for the Phoenicians. Recently read Mycenaean texts contain the feminine adjective po-ni-ki-ja, which also means "red". Local sources call the country Canaan (biblical Canaan), and the people - Canaanites, at least since the 15th century. BC e. (Akkadian inscription on the statue of Idrimi, Egyptian stele of Amenhotep II from Memphis). In Hellenistic times, this name is present on coins issued in Phenicia: "Laodicea in Canaan." The Akkadian texts from Nuzi contain the word kinahhu meaning "purple", which may be directly related to the Greek foinix.

Media, News, Publishing

четверг, 5 марта 2020 г.

News update 05/03/2020 (563)

четверг, 5 марта 2020 г.

News update 05/03/2020 (563)

четверг, 5 марта 2020 г.